HamsterOS

Coming November 2026

Floppy-first · 386+ · VGA desktop · built from scratch

HamsterOS is a hobby operating system built from the ground up — a 32-bit protected-mode kernel that boots from a single 1.44 MB floppy disk and runs a complete GUI desktop on hardware from the 386 era. No virtual machines required. No dependencies on Linux or Windows underneath. Just a hamster, a floppy, and a lot of ambition.

Screenshots

Boot screen — Version .30

Welcome screen and file browser

Desktop with Control Panel

What’s in it

Runs on real hardware

Targets 386+ 32-bit protected mode. Boots from a 1.44 MB FAT12 floppy — no hard drive required.

Full VGA desktop

640×480 in 16 colours on the floppy build. The hard-disk build runs 800×600 in 256 colours.

FAT12 filesystem

Full read/write support with verified sector writes. Desktop icons and preferences persist back to the boot floppy.

File browser

Columns, sorting, copy/paste, rename, delete, and free-space display across the A:, I:, and R: drives.

Built-in apps

Notepad (with Undo, Find, Replace), Clock, Calculator, Calendar, Paint, Piano, Sliding Puzzle, Snake, Mines, and more.

Screen savers

Including the Flying Hamsters 16-colour sprite saver.

RAM disk

Available as drive R: — writable scratch space that survives until the next boot.

Launcher bar

Ten visible tool slots per page, plus an app-sensitive menu bar and a recursive filename Find tool.

Technical specs

Architecture	32-bit protected mode (i386+)
Boot medium	1.44 MB FAT12 floppy (single disk)
Floppy display	640×480 × 16 colours (VGA mode 12h, direct register programming)
HD display	800×600 × 256 colours (VBE/VESA enhanced build)
Bootloader	GRUB/Multiboot (floppy); Syslinux experiment path in tree
Filesystem	FAT12 (A: boot floppy) / FAT16 (optional I: image) / RAM disk (R:)
Input	Polling keyboard + PS/2 mouse
Current version	0.30
Target release	November 2026

Where things stand

HamsterOS is well past the “can it boot” stage. The current focus is stabilizing FAT-backed save/load, tightening redraw performance, and polishing file-management workflows. The floppy build already runs the full desktop with all the apps listed above on real 386/486 hardware.

We’re targeting a public release in November 2026. Check back here for updates, or keep an eye on our news feed.